Blog Posts: climate change

Negotiators made progress in a number of areas at the latest UN climate talks, which wrapped on May 10, but an overburdened agenda left them with a lot more ground to cover before the big climate summit (COP24) in Poland this December.

Members of the international community are meeting in Bonn to continue the Talanoa Dialogue, a year-long process designed to evaluate current NDCs. As hundreds of submissions highlight the potential of existing commitments and the urgency to enhance them, key messages are beginning to emerge.

Cinderella’s job in the household included cleaning the ashes from the fireplace – exactly the role forests play for Earth by absorbing fossil fuels' carbon emissions. Yet much like Cinderella, forests remain underappreciated.

Most climate change solutions focus on mitigation—ways to slash emissions as quickly as possible, such as by adopting renewable energy. But research shows these aren't enough. To prevent the worst impacts of climate change, the world will need to reach net-negative emissions, a point at which we're actually removing more carbon from the air than we're putting in.

Home to more than a billion people, these countries are charting a dynamic path towards low-carbon wealth. To stay the course, they'll need to confront three issues: inclusive development, rapidly-expanding cities and economy-wide measures for reducing carbon emissions.

The Paris Agreement was the result of unexpected collaboration between the United States and China. President Trump has backed his nation out of the deal, but the surge in subnational action in the U.S. creates an opportunity for joint research, knowledge transfer and continued low-carbon development.

From crop fields in the Iberian Peninsula to city streets in the southern United States, all communities will feel the effects of a warmer world. Here's a visual look at what the future holds for five regions.